Tag: reisblogger

Last week I was able to spend some time in my beloved hometown Delft- in the Netherlands and I always love to wander through the city. This is the city where I was born and it will always keep a special place in my heart.

What I love about this city so much is that it has played a big part in the ‘Dutch’ history and that it has special connections with the Royal Family- it is often called ‘Small Amsterdam’ and I truly understand why. Delft has the same great canals, beautiful views and a very vibrant vibe, only in a smaller setting.

What I also love about Delft is that it is really developing and it gets more hip and trendy lounges and coffee bars. And since I love me some coffee I thought it would be a great idea to go out and find the current top 3 coffee bars in Delft and share these amazing hotspots with you.

1. KEK
KEK is an awesome hotspot in the city center of Delft- open 7 days a week. What more can you ask for. What really draw me to Kek was the big red bench before the enterence. That including the big window really gave it that ‘NYC city vibe’. Inside it is a place where the city meets urban and you can definitely see that they have thought well about their brand and interior.

They have created all little coffee and hang out corners that will make you feel like you are chilling with your friends at home. They serve yummy coffee’s and many other delisssssh drinks and juices and hey- if you want to go shopping? That is possible too- they sell cute little bracelets and necklaces as well!

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My friend went to visit KEK as well and wrote a full review about this place. It is in Dutch so if you are a Dutchie, check her article as well: CLICK HERE!

Koffie & zo is a cute little coffee place directly at one of the famous canals from Delft.

Located on a corner of the street with also the big windows makes this the perfect place for a good hang out sesh- they serve delicious drinks and yummy cakes and this makes a great place for a friend get together or a first date.

What I love about the interior is that they have many items in the store that are up for sale as well. That is cool because if you like something you can purchase it and it also allows the interior to change every once in a while. So every time you visit you will find something new. And hey, bikes hanging from the ceiling? Why not 🙂

What I especially love about Koffie & zo is that the owners are super friendly and they really make sure that every guest feels at home!

JANS is a cool hotspot at the Brabantse Turfmarkt- the ‘rectangle ish square’ where every Saturday you can find the local market with fresh veggies, flowers, waffles etc.

In all fairness, it is more than a coffee bar and it also has different openings hours because you can go there for dinner as well, but I think it is a cool place for a coffee get a way too.
The thing that separates them from the others is that besides having different/longer opening hours you can also enjoy many other you can also go here for a fun day out and have an high tea!

I have not tried out the high tea but I will definitely go back soon and have the high tea so I can write a full review about this awesome place!

How are you today? I am doing mighty fine. Yes- I actually used the expression ‘mighty fine’ – haha.
As you might have noticed I have not posted or been online on my social media channels for a while now and it all has it’s reason.INTRODUCTION-I have participated in a social experiment. One that might seem weird for bloggers to participate in.

As a blogger our entire life (or well, a big part of it) is online. We are online influencers and to be able to ‘online influence’ you should be online. duh. We live in a time of day where everything needs to be fast fast fast- but isn’t it a bit too fast at times?

I don’t know about you but sometimes I felt like I was getting lost. I don’t want to nag and complain but it can get overwhelming at times. I always had so much to do, had so many assignments, so many emails to reply, so many social media channels to maintain and than he pressure of other bloggers. It is a normal development that when you see others being successful that you want to be equally as successful or perhaps even more successful.
Sometimes you see other bloggers grow fast all of a sudden or get the assignments that you did not get and it can be stressful and again, overwhelming. – I noticed that I started to feel tensed to a certain point where I even physically got ill. I am on my phone- all day everyday. I could not even be present anymore in a conversation- “Oh wait, let me instagram that’- ‘Oh, I must re-tweet that shit, it is so funny’- Ring a bell? Again- there is nothing wrong with that behavior but I do advice you to take a breather some times, and so I followed my own advice and that is what happend.

CHALLENGE: I challenged myself to be offline for 2 weeks- 14 days. I gave my self some cheat moments where I allowed my self to reply text messages if I needed to meet up with friends in order to have real life contact. I also did use my FB to set up a dinner with friends but only to create a real life event instead of being ‘online’- Other than that I was not allowed to text, to FB, to mail, to Instagram (hence my disappearance for 2 weeks on IG) and so on.

SO, WHAT HAVE I LEARNED IN THESE 2 WEEKS:
Okay, first and for most I must admit, it was freaking hard. It was so hard that it actually became a bit pathetic. When you try to stop with a certain habit you will realize how much you actually do something, do you feel me? – The last thing before I went to bed was check my mail and Instagram and the first thing I did every morning was read my mail, check my Instagram and reply the message of my followers and readers.THE GIFT OF TIME-
The first 2 days were difficult not to do this. I automatically grabbed my phone and than I was like, oh uhm, no and I put my phone away again. All of a sudden I had this ‘free time’ and I was like, hmm what should I do with it.
I started having breakfast by actually sitting down and enjoying a nice meal instead of walking around with my phone in my hand and running around in my home trying to get ready with a sneaky run back to my kitchen to put a spoon full of yoghurt in my mouth and than continuing running around getting ready, doing my hair while Instagramming.

An other moment was right before I went to bed- I also had a lot of free time all of a sudden. Instead of spending 30 minutes (or more) before sleeping on the world wide web I just flipped through some magazines and I noticed that this actually enhanced my sleepy feeling ( I don’t know the correct word haha) but I got relaxed and tired in a good way and I feel a sleep quicker than before.

BEING PRESENT-
I was so much more present in the moment and that was really something I wanted to accomplish. I wanted to really be there in the moment instead of thinking about all the things I still had to do for my blog or Instagramming every single meal/drink/sunset.
When I was with friends I could actually pay attention to everything they were saying instead of thinking ‘ is this a moment I should Instagram”

NEW FOUND LOVE FOR NATURE-
I always have loved the nature. From mountains to beaches, from forests to waterfalls- I am a nature lover. But lately every time I went somewhere, anywhere I was more focussed to find the perfect light to capture the moment instead of really enjoying the moment. I have visited so many cool places in this week without taking a single picture. And I can tell you, it was awesome.

HEALTH- body, mind and soul.
Also my health has improved in this one week. A week seems like a short period but it really was nice to have this extra time I had all of a sudden- I felt less stress because I was not constantly checking what others were doing, I felt less stressed because I was not constantly comparing myself with others. I slept way better and my insomnia disappeared in this week- I could sleep like a baby and I am sure that it helped that I did not have a bright light of my laptop/phone in my face before sleeping. Overall I just felt better. When I felt more rested I also felt more energized to cook more and to create healthier meals. It is actually a really vicious circle- when I am tired after a long day at work being online I don’t feel like cooking- I just get some take away, most of the time not the healthiest dishes to eat and than I become even more tired by putting these unhealthy things in my body- now, with my new found energy I was excited to discover new recipes and to take better care of my body.

I also had some time to regroup and recover. I had the time to still work on my blog but ‘behind the scenes’ – I had the time to really think of the direction that I wanted to go, brands that would fit my brand, collaborations I would like to do and those that I don’t want to do. I had the time to clear my mind and at first, where I was afraid that I would be less inspired I actually got more inspired by the offline world. And isn’t that the only real world out there?CONCLUSION-My offline week was fantastic- I felt less stressed, ate better, felt healthier and got a lot of inspiration! I felt less overwhelmed and I am excited to be online again. Being online is not something that is wrong but we should not get carried away and allow our selves some breathers.
I think every blogger should have at least one period a year where he or she will be offline. For some a week might be to long, others want to try a longer period but you know what, for all the hardcore bloggers, at least try it for a full 24 hours and see what it will do for you. Besides it being hard I know it might seem impossible- especially for those that make a living from the online world…however, I guarantee you that your offline experience will be priceless.

Last week I had the pleasure to visit London and when I was looking for a new hotspot to discover where I could stay,

my friend recommended me the Qbic Hotel. Until so far I have never heard of the Qbic hotel so I googled it and I came across their website.

After browsing it for a while I decided that that was the place where I wanted to stay. It seemed like a high end luxury hotspot where cool design, urban art and comfort came together and I was ready to explore and discover the hotel.

I have stayed with my lovely friends at the and I had a fantastic experience. If you are looking for a place to stay in London, this is it!

LOCATION:

The hotel is very easy to reach. With several bus stops nearby the hotel and a tube station just a 2 minute walk from the hotel.

The Tube station that is near the hotel is Aldgate East. When you arrive at Aldgate East it is important to leave the tube station via White chappel gallery. [see picture above]
When you got out of the station turn left and walk about 50 meter straight forward. At some point at your right side you will see a park and when you enter the park you kind of already will see the big Qbic sign.

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THE HOTEL:The hotel has 4 flours and several different rooms. I had the pleasure to stay in room 425 on the 4th floor.

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On the ground floor you can find the reception and the bar/restaurant area. When you enter the hotel you will see the reception in front of you, on the left side you will have the elevators that will take you to your room and on the right side of the reception you have the bar/restaurant en lounge area.

The lounge is amazing. I was really impressed with the design. The design chair and comfy couches that they had over there including all the (wall) art were just a treat to look at. From all the hotels that I have stayed in (and those are quite a lot by now) the Qbic in London definitely made it to my world wide top 3!

What is also really nice about the Qbic in London are the complimentary hot beverages!

Free coffee for all the hotel guests 🙂

Each floor has a complimentary coffee and tea station where you can get your hot beverages 24/7. So if you want to snuggle up in your hotel room and watch a movie you can get your hot tea or coffee so your night will be even more pleasurable!

BREAKFAST:

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You have 2 options for breakfast.

The Breakfast Menu!

You can take food from the buffet, this varies from fresh fruit and yoghurt, bread and pastries, cheese and sandwich spreads, cereals with milk or you can order ala carte from the menu. This is not included in the breakfast price but still very worth of trying!

THE ROOMS:

Beautiful room, room 425!

I have stayed in room 425. Unfortunately I was not able to explore the other beautiful rooms during my stay but I will definitely do that this time. Now I can not compare all the rooms but I can sure tell you a lot about mine. When I entered the room I immediately wished it was my own home. The cool and clean design really spoke to me, I directly felt at home. I also understand the name „Qbic’ a bit better. Allt he rooms are build as ‚cubicles’/ Qbics! The room is very well organized and divided in a sleeping area, an workstation and storage area and the very bright and spacious bathroom. What I hate about hotel rooms are those with bad lighting and the Qbic was seriously a dream come true for every blogger when it comes down to light. With several different switches to adjust the bathroom light just to your comfort and ease it is perfect to take pictures all day everyday and you don’t have to wait until you have proper daylight in order to take your pics.

*I feel really sad because I also made a lot of pictures of myself in the room but unfortunately these got erased because my camera formatted my card. Thank God I already placed 90% of my pictures on my laptop but hey, definitely a good reason to go back soon!

Lovely bed @ The Qbic London

Okay, back to the room. Besides the perfect lighting I must high light (haha, pun intended) the amazing green design lamp. This is the ‚moonlight’ lamp and you can put it on if you want to have more of a chill vibe in the room.

The design Moodlight!

If you want to do your make up you can adjust this by just putting on one of the other lights. Again- Qbic, perfect lights for every mood!

What I also love that underneath each button you can see what the switch is for:

Moodlight, main light, etc and this is fantastic. It is so annoying when you enter a hotel room and you want to put on the bed side light and you have to press 80 buttons before you hit the correct one. With the Qbic everything is easy and I absolutely love that!

Another big love of the Qbic is the art on the wall. I absolutely adore it. I have stayed in the room with this wall art:

Love the wall art!

And the cool thing is that my painting was also projected in the lounge area!

The bed is super duper comfy and the bed is stacked with a bunch of pillows so you will have something to hug if you are in the hotel by yourself 🙂

The work station area and storage area was really cool. Everything was made of robust wooden material and that gave the room a cool vibe. It also was really handy because there was enough space to hang everything. What I also liked about it that it was so open. You often have those ‚closed closets’ that kind of take a lot of space and make the room look smaller. This way the room was still very spacious. There was also a safe available where you could enter your own 4 digit code so you could keep your important stuff extra save 🙂

The bathroom is very bright and spacious. I never would have chosen the color yellow for a bathroom but it kinda really worked and I got inspired to perhaps change the color in my own bathroom as well. It is very bright and it creates a sunny vibe and it perfectly goes with the clean cut vibe that the entire room has. What I also really liked was the quote next to the sink:

Perfect for your morning inspiration! 🙂

FUNFACT:
When I left the first day for breakfast I was a bit confused. I looked for over 15 minutes to find the ‚do not disturb sign’. I always put this up because I want my room to be cleaned when I leave the hotel to explore the city and not when I return from breakfast. After my search and when I could not find it I decided to just go for breakfast and hope that my room would not get cleaned in the meanwhile. When I was walking towards the elevator I saw these stuffed animals hanging on the door. First I thought it was a joke, that it was maybe a group of people that stayed together and that this way they could easily find each other. At some point when I saw more than 4 of those thingies I thought, let me just take a closer look and OH MY GOD, it was the cutest thing ever. THAT was the „DO NOT DISTURB sign” – how great is that? I laughed so hard. I went back to my room and got my own doggy! and hung it on my door! Totally cute!

MY OPINION:

No pets aloud, but stuffed animals are more than welcome 🙂

I loved my stay at the Qbic. I have stayed there from Friiday night to Sunday morning. If you follow me on Instagram you know that I got a bit sick on Saturday night. I think all the traveling got the best of me, or perhaps I ate something wrong. Feeling sick when you are away from home sucks but I can not be more grateful of the great care from my friends in the Qbic hotel. They were really kind and thoughtful and I got some light toasted bread to easy my stomach and drank some warm tea. It is great to see that the staff of an hotel are so involved with the wellbeing of their guests.

I loved the location of the hotel. it is not in a hectic area at all but it was kind of great to discover this side of London. I have discovered plenty of new hotspots near the hotel that I will share in another article. You can reach many hotspots and touristy points by tube but I love that when it is time to sleep you can actually have a peaceful night because it is quite outside.

The complimentary tea and coffee station is fab. It is super duper nice to have a nice hot cup of tea while watching the telly (that is directly attached to the bed for your comfort).

WOULD I STAY HERE AGAIN?
Absolutely. The Qbic has still other rooms I want to explore and discover and it will definitely on top of my list when I will go back to London! The Qbic gets an A+ from me in every aspect. Art, design, spaciousness of the rooms, bathroom and inspo in general. I mean, there are even quotes placed in the elevator so you have something to read on your way up or down! Awesome? I do think so!

FOR WHO:This hotel is suitable for just about everyone. I really looked around when I was having my breakfast to what kind of people it attracted. I saw the young and in love couple in their late teens/ early twenties that were in London for the weekend, I saw a couple in their 40’s that were reading the London map and I also met a group of German girls my age that were in London for the weekend. Conclusion; the Qbic welcomes everyone!

I do think that it is a perfect hotel for those that appreciate comfort and luxury at the same time. People that like art and design. Business people, friends, couples and even the solo traveler, the Qbic is perfect for you!

Today is finally the day where we can launch at the newest and most fab project that is currently out there! The #DGTravelbabesproject !

At Dobe Globewe believe in being your true authentic self and by being just who you are, you can truly inspire others. We believe in empowering ourselves and others!

There is no room for jealousy, hate or any other negative thought and feelings. In the blogger world you often run in to others with the same mindset, the same passion, the same love for the thing that you love the most. In our case it is Traveling. All the ladies above are bitten by the wanderlust bug and we all wander the globe. In stead of seeing each other as competition we decided to bundle our awesomeness and create this project for YOU!

We might all have the same passion but we have our own personality, our own character and therefor we can bring you a very versatile article, every week!

We believe in creating a strong female travel community where we can share our love for traveling the globe and bond over a mutual love for the world and all of her beautiful places!

But first things first, let’s introduce our team. So far it is the magic five,but we are always looking for new talent, new incredible women who can join our team and spread the wander loving’ together with us!

All the bio’s down below are written by the #DGTravelbabes themselves so you can get a real personal introduction!

#DGTravelbabe Cigdem:

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Hi, My name is Cigdem! Probably a difficult name for you to pronounce, haha. Try saying ‘Chi damn’ – Got it? Okay! Good 🙂
I am the creator and founder of Dobe Globe. I created Dobe Globe so we could have a platform where we could be awesome together. I love to travel and I want to see as much of our beautiful globe as I can. I have am Dutch girl with international roots from all over the globe and I lived for a long time between Europe and Asian and became a true ‘Eurasian’. Last year I moved back to Europe and I settled in Antwerp where I live with my pet (stuffed animal) cat. #foreveralone.
I am a travel journalist by heart and a professional photographer and I combine those two things at my website. I am a Asia Specialist and a little piece of my heart (or well, a big chunk) will always belong to Bali.
I am a luxury travel specialist and I love to do hotelreviews and take you with me along my journey through everything lush and luxurious !

“I am one of the wanderlusters with an endless urge to roam the globe, better known as Veera Bianca. My journey in to the world of travel blogging and social media started on a horse farm in the countryside of Australia back in 2006. Since that adventure, life has never been the same. I am not the kind to stay in one place for too long, I need adventure and I live for landing to new places. Since then I’ve returned to Australia several times, studied a degree in tourism, lived in Hong Kong, worked at an airport, volunteered in India and turned my travel blog into a business. These day’s I work as a Community Lead for a fab travel app CreateTrips here in Finland, write my blog and do some freelance writing for Expedia Singapore and Matador Network. My work takes me around the world – I’m actually writing this to you from Helsinki Airport!

I am madly passionate about inspiring people to go travel and to dare to live. To do what their heart beats for.”

Hi – I’m Brooke, one half of The Nomadic Newlyweds! I’m a storyteller and a photographer… I’ve always loved finding life’s hidden treasures – whether it’s park with an incredible view of the landscape on foreign soil or the culinary stylings of an up-and-coming chef in a tiny restaurant tucked away in my own home town.

Viewing the world through a different lens helps me bring a creative and aesthetic edge to my travel content. Having kept adventure journals since childhood, it’s a joyful undertaking to now document my experiences as a young wife, traveler and entrepreneur online – as a way of inspiring others to live fully!

I’m fascinated with the depth and heritage of every culture and I’m energized by meeting people and capturing their joy, their pain and their beings on film and through written word. I believe we find ourselves, we grow and we take flight when we experience life outside our comfort zones.

I’m on a quest to live life to the fullest, tasting the flavor of life with my husband as we surround ourselves with like-minded dreamers all over the globe!

Hi y’all! The name is Carey, but you can call me CareBear. I am an American, southern belle at heart, currently living in Prague, Czech Republic teaching English. But you can really just call me a traveling addict ( with no need for an intervention)

I have been happily infected with an incurable case of Wanderlust. In September of 2013 I took a last spontaneous trip to Croatia on a whim that changed my life. There is always those things you want to do, but you’re scared and fearful, and then something just clicks in your brain and it all seems right in that very distinct moment. That’s exactly what this trip did to me. I felt I was already living the dream. I was happy living in Newport Beach, California with a great job and a great life. But I always wanted MORE, and questioned myself, could I be even MORE happier? Traveling makes me happy, really, really happy. Whenever I return from a trip I could never explain the feeling to someone who doesn’t travel. So I decided to take a trip where I didn’t have to “return” anywhere. Booked my one way ticket to Europe, and here I am almost two years later. I haven’t regretted one decision I’ve made…… well, maybe that one night in ..ahhh…nevermind…thats another story for another time. 44 countries down, countless plane/train/bus rides later…. and still plenty more to explore.

The moment I step off of a train,bus,plane, boat… into a new foreign place my heart skips a beat. That feeling is what I thrive and live for. I truly believe in inspiring others and my mission is to help others to do what you love, whatever that may be! Yep, cliche, I know..but it is the truth. I started off with social media outlets to keep my friends and family updated, little did I know that others were interested in my story and following along my journey. Fun videos, Vlogging, and Pictures are my preferred creative outlet to share my stories so you can truly feel connected and see these experiences through my eyes and share the real emotions of what traveling does to your soul.

Hello world! I am originally from Washington, DC, USA, and I am proud to say that I am a travel addict. I caught the travel bug in 2006 on my very first overseas trip to Italy. It was somewhere I had always dreamt about and it turned out to be better than I ever imagined! I became so fascinated with the lifestyle, the architecture, the history, and the people. It opened my eyes up to the world and I left wanting more. As soon as I returned home, I immediately started planning my trip back! I realised that there is so much more world and culture to experience than the small bubble I had been living in my whole life. A fire was ignited inside me and I became so passionate about seeing everything else this beautiful world has to offer. Since then, my life has been completely centered around traveling and I have been to 44 countries! !

I started a blog recently just to document and share my experiences. Even if no one ever reads it, it doesn’t matter because it will be like a diary that I can look back on one day to remember all these fascinating places I have been and the stories that came from them. I never anticipated it, but it has become like a creative outlet for me, a release that makes me really happy. It’s like my baby and I cannot wait to put more time into it and share so many more of my crazy adventures with everyone! If I can inspire just one person to finally get over their fears and start to travel, then I’ll die a happy girl. !

The name CrazyTravelista developed from several years of my friends and family calling me crazy every time I told them about yet another trip I had planned. Before I would go on that trip, I would plan the next trip so I would have something to look forward to when I got back. I sold my car, most of my expensive belongings, and have lived a more simple life the last few years. All so I could travel more. Crazy, huh? Maybe a little, but it’s my number one passion in life and I have never had anything make me feel more alive than when I’m traveling. !

I must say that I am extremely touched by how supportive and encouraging the female travel community has been throughout all this. It seems everyone is trying to help one another and it’s really empowering and inspiring to see females working together in such an unselfish way. I am very blessed to be apart of it. Hopefully we can inspire more girls to get out there and see the world for themselves! !

You can follow along on my adventures on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat at @crazytravelista and on my blog at www.crazytravelista.com. Happy traveling! !

So that is our lovely team. We will bring you the best travel articles, reviews, tips and tricks next year so buckle up, we are coming for you! But for now, a merry xmas my loves and keep on traveling!

How are you doing? I have been doing great! I was discussing my new years eve plans with my friend when he asked; “So, when we get to the first of January ’16, what will your goals and plans be”.
And this made me think. Not about my new years resolutions but about my goals and plans in general.

Why should we wait until the first day of the new year to give our selves a fresh start, a clean slate. Why do we need that 1-1-16 so much that we allow ourselves to continue with our current habits instead of saying:“TOMORROW STARTS TODAY”

I thought about what tomorrow starts today would mean to me and I came up with these 15 things that I would like to accomplish before December the 11th 2016. You don’t have to have the ‘biggest’ goals, you can think of small things too, just things you would like to do and accomplish for your self. If you want to lose weight or perhaps stop smoking, why don’t you start with that NOW. Or at least, start with making a plan on how to do that….NOW!

For now, my 15 thingies:

CREATE MY ULTIMATE TRAVEL BUCKET LIST
– I have traveled a lot but there is still so much of the world I have not seen yet. I would like to create my ultimate travel bucket list with places I have not seen yet so I have a better vision of what kind of trips to plan for the up and coming year!

ACTUALLY TAKE ONE OF THE TRIPS FROM MY ULTIMATE TRAVEL BUCKET LIST
-I am not a fulltime travelblogger anymore. I actually have a fulltime job too. So combined with my blog I actually have 2 fulltime jobs, and I love both. Therefor, it is not realistic to take 500 trips haha. But I would like to take (at least one) of my travel bucket list, and make it happen!

CREATE AN REALISTIC EXERCISE SCHEDULE
Excercising is always a great idea. Even if you are in shape it will not hurt to take good care of your body. I have always loved to excersise only in all fairness, during my period of depression I did not really go to the gym anymore. Click here for the article And I did gain weight so my goal is to lose this weight in a normal and healthy way. Not by starving myself but by creating a exercise schedule. A realistic one. Sometimes people tend to want things too fast. I understand that you want to lose weight, but going to the gym (when you are a starter) 7 times a week is not the best idea.

GET MORE KNOWLEDGE ON EATING HEALTHIER
I would love to learn more about food. They say that you are what you eat. Well, that I am a box of oreo cookies. Haha…. I think that that is enough said.

TRAVEL TO ICELAND
Oh northern lights, where are you? Okay, realistically, there is not a really big chance that I will actually get to see the northern lights during my trip to iceland but hey, a girl can dream right. It is not really something I can control. However, northernlights or not, I really want to see and discover Iceland!

READ ONE BOOK A MONTH
I used to read so much. Now I am always on my phone. And yes, YOU ARE TOO! I love to read tho, and I want to start reading more again. Perhaps before going to bed. It is much healthier to stare at my book pages than at my phone before sleeping.

VISIT AT LEAST 25 NEW DESIGN/BOUTIQUE HOTELS FOR MY WEBSITE
Since I won’t be traveling fulltime due to my job, I will still travel on a monthly bases. 25 hotels a year is an average of 2,1 (haha)- a month. That is very manageable.

MAKE MY (what now still is my secret project) VERY SUCCESSFUL
Okay, more about this project on Sunday.

LEARN HOW TO DO A HANDSTAND
Yes, weird goal right. I always just wanted to be able to do this but I was always to afraid to try because I was afraid that I would fall and break my neck. I know, that is so random right. But this will be the year where I can finally make a handstand (or come close-ish to it:)

VISIT 10 CITIES I HAVE NEVER BEEN TO BEFORE
10 cities is quite a lot..but I really want to do this. The world is beautiful and I want to see it all.

REACH 15K FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM
For some this might be a weird goal, but you have to remember, as a blogger your social media accounts are very important. Some bloggers have over 100K followers or some even 1M. Impressive, yes. Fair? Not always. Of course some people really got these followers in an honest way. They create content that others like to follow but others also buy their followers. It is actually quite obvious because when you click on some accounts you see that they are actually spam accounts. I do not know why people do that. I might grow ‘slower’ than others, but my followers are real and I like to interact with them. Therefor, reaching 15K will be a big accomplishment for me!

GET 5 ARTICLES POST IN PRINT (MAGAZINES/NEWSPAPERS)
I used to write for several magazines when I was living in Asia but I have noticed that I have been freelancing so little lately and I think it is actually quite sad. I consider myself to be a good writer and it truly is my passion. I would like to start to publish my work in print again, of course when I get the chance to do so!

SPEND MORE TIME WITH MY FAMILY AND CLOSE FRIENDS
This year has been a crazy hectic year. I have moved to Antwerp and I live my single girl life here (what also has been quite the adjustment)- I am not able to see my family and friends a lot because they live all over the world. Literally. But I would like to invest my (very rare) free time on spending more time with them and really make more of an effort.

EVALUATE EVERY MONTH ON HOW I AM DOING
I think it is important to keep track of your goals and dreams. I would like to take the time monthly to look back on the previous month and to see how I am doing

VISIT ISTANBUL TOGETHER WITH MY MOM
For some reason we keep postponing this trip. But this year I would like to make it happen and I would like to visit this beautiful city, with my beautiful mom.

I went to Oslo for my birthday weekend and one of the hotels I have stayed in is the Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel Oslo! This beautiful 4 star hotel is in the midst of the center of Oslo and definitely worth visiting! Oslo is such a great city to visit because there is so much to see and to do and if you are looking for the perfect place to stay, a place with beautiful rooms, fantastic views, a sauna and a pool and oh wait, your own SKYBAR, The Oslo Plaza is definitely the place for you!

The view from the hotel room on the 27th floor.

LOCATION + HOW TO GET THERE
When you arrive at Gardermoen Airport you can take a train to Oslo city center. You have the standard train and the fast train that will go to “Oslo Sentralstasjon”. The hotel is located in the city center of Oslo and very conveniently almost directly next to the Central Station of Oslo as you can see in the map below. From the Central Station it is just a 5 minute walk and therefor very easy to reach. The hotel is located in a nice area and also a 5 minute walk away from a shopping mall!The Oslo City Mall is definitely worth visiting and if you are there, go to the Froyo Shop on the first floor for some delish Froyo!

MY ROOM ON THE 27TH FLOOR!

Oslo Plaza

I had the pleasure of staying on the 27th floor so you can imagine how great my view was.
I could see all over Oslo and it was just magnificent. I stayed in room 2703 and I have to say, the room was quite spacious.A closer look to what I was actually seeing: SO HOW DOES THE ROOM LOOK YOU MIGHT ASK? – let me try to paint you a picture:
When you enter the room you will see some cabinets at your left side where you can place your luggage and hang your coats. There is also a full-size mirror which is great if you want to do a last minute outfit check before leaving the room. On the right side you have a door that will lead you to your bathroom. My bathroom also came with a bathtub which was great.

The bathroom at the Radisson Blu Plaza hotel!

Directly next to the bathroom door on the left side you had your ‘working corner’ where you could easily sit with your laptop at the desk provided working on your website like I did, or just on some other business.

Radisson Blu Plaza Room view

Next to your ‘office’ area you will find the bed. The amazingly comfy bed! The room also has a big screen T.V if you decide to have a nice night in. On the left side of the bed, directly next to window you have a nice sofa where you can relax and enjoy the magnificent view!

Oslo Plaza

The room also has a minibar filled with a lot of goodies:

Close up Mini Bar at the Radisson Oslo Plaza Hotel in NorwayThe minibar at the Radisson Blu Plaza in Oslo

A big plus, there is a mini coffee making machine so before heading down to breakfast you can already make your own coffee in your room. For me this is such a luxury because I honestly can not function without a cup of coffee in the morning. Haha!

The hotel room at the Oslo Plaza

SAUNA + POOL

The pool at the Oslo Plaza

The hotel also comes with its own sauna and pool. A perfect way to start your day is to swim and enjoy some quality time in the sauna. The Oslo Plaza offers both. What I thought was really cool is that in the sauna you will again have an magnificent view. Even in the sauna it’s self you have this small window that ables you to look outside and enjoy the beauty of Oslo- if that is not amazing I do not know what is.

The view from the sauna

Also in both the sauna area as in the pool area the entire space is been surrounded by big windows so where ever you go, you can enjoy the gorgeousness of Oslo by just peeking out of your window!

VIEW

BREAKFAST:As a foodlover the breakfast for me is very important. Also, the breakfast is your most important meal of the day so I always take extra notice when I do these reviews on what hotels are actually offering. They offered several pastries like croissants and chocolate buns but also normal bread.What really stood out for me was the different kind of fish they served at breakfast. I think eating fish at breakfast is a typically Norwegian thing. Even though I love fish it is not for me in the morning, however a little bit of smoked salmon could never hurt so I sticked with the salmon and some blue cheese.

The make your own salad and fruit bar!

They also offered a make your own salad bar where they provided you with fresh greens and veggies and all kinds of oils and dressings.

yummie!

If you are more in the mood for some yogh or some milk with some fresh fruit, have no fear! That is possible too. Cool fact; they had all kinds of milk. From soya milk, to ‘normal’ milk to lactose free milk, it was all available!

Tea time!The Cereal Bar!

If you are just in the mood for some cereal with seeds and nuts, you can create your own delishhhh bowl!

There were also hot meals available. From noodles to scrambled eggs, warm veggies to beans and potatoes.

SKYBAR
The Radisson Blu Plaza Oslo has it’s own Sky Bar and it is fantastic. De decor is in blue,grey tones and it just fits the city of Oslo so well. Come here to enjoy one of their fantastic cocktails while looking over the City !

Sky Bar Oslo

FOR WHO IS THIS HOTEL?
If you are in to luxury and beauty than this is the hotel for you. This hotel will cater to all your wishes. Besides having an amazing room with probably the comfiest bed you will ever sleep in, the hotel also comes with a pool, a sauna and even it’s own sky bar. The hotel is perfectly located and very easy to reach. I would recommend this hotel to business people, friends traveling and couples.

Today I will share with you some of my favorite travel IG’s. I love Instagram. I think it is such an amazing social media platform where you can inspire others and where you can find inspiration. I often spend hours and hours just looking up inspring pictures and I come across great accounts that inspire me to travel more and go to places where I have never been before! Or to revisit places I have been before.
I did not put my own Instagram in my current top 5 accounts but if you like, feel free to visit my Instagram too and allow me to take you with me on all my trips. From Bali to Rome, From Berlin to Kuala Lumpur! Visit my gallery here: www.instagram.com/dobeglobe

1. @DOYOUTRAVELJack Morris is the face behind the amazingly inspiring Instagram account @DOYOUTRAVEL. If I could ever chose to go on a date with a fellow traveler it would be this guy. He is such a big inspiration for me, not just because he travels a lot like I do too, but the way he knows how to capture the exact moment that makes a picture just fantastic. He is such a talented photographer and movie maker (check out his YT channel too). From Bali to Thailand, from Europe to the US- He has seen it all and he captures all the great moments for us. Check out his Instagram account or his Youtube Channel for more inspiration!

2. @ERWNCHOWErwin Chow is an amazing Photographer from Long Beach California. His Instagram gallery is the perfect combination of beautiful pictures with an urban feel and pictures with a beachy vibe. From pictures of the Santa Monica Pier to pictures of the Oakland Bay Bridge, The Hollywood Sign to pics of skyscrapers- He captures them all, perfectly. For us to enjoy.
Visit his gallery here: *Click!

3. @SARAHKJPSarah Vickers is the founder of the website http://www.classygirlswearpearls.com
On her Instagram account, with an impressive following of 337K followers she will take you along her trip to the most beautiful destinations. Currently she is exploring Italy. You can admire her beautiful pictures at her Instagram!

4. @MURADOSMANNOh my, where to start with this account. This account is everything. #relationshipgoals, #travelgoals, #awesomepeople.
If you have about 3,5 million followers on IG you must be doing something right, right?
They have started the trend where couples take pictures, holding hands, where you only see the girl from the back and the guys hand holding her. The pictures focus more on the view than on the people in it. Well okay, in their case it is a bit different because Nataly is always as equally stunning as the background but still. They visit the most beautiful places and Murad is definitely a fantastic photographer. He captures his wife and the background in the most beautiful way and that truly makes his Instagram account an inspiring one!

Follow the Adventures of Murad and his beautiful wife Nataly at his Instagram!

5. @SJANAELISE
This Australian beauty of only 20 years old with currently 1 million IG followers has truly a gorgeous gallery. Her Instagram is not just about traveling but she posts pictures of herself doing yoga and eating healthy meals too. This fun and bubbly girl inspires me in many ways. Even though we are almost a decade apart in age (omg, I feel so old now) I think she is a good example of how to live your life in your twenties. She has this young, wild and free vibe all over her and she comes across as a happy and strong individual who tries to live her life to the fullest! Girl, you are doing an amazing job! And for those that are not following her yet, visit her page, you will love her!

I hope you got a lot of inspiration throughout his post and by visiting these amazing gallery’s. Who are your favorite travelbloggers and who’s IG account do you love to visit? Let me know! I am very curious !